Jim Morrison (The Doors) - where does he stand lyrically?

oh good, an internet argument based on picking out the lamest of an entire catalogue of work

 

Jim’s best writing are in the Doors songs IMO and they have musical accompaniment to boot.

 

That's correct they both get credit. I was thinking it was more Robby's since it had orchestrations, whereas Jim's songs didn't. Should have made the album in any case.

 

It's still hilarious and so Jim

 

like masswriter said above...he's no bob dylan.... unlike uncle bob.... jim morrison was never accused of plagiarizing lyrics!!!!

 

interesting...who was the advisor?

 

IMO, though he wasn’t a musician, he was a top lyricists, one of the best for the style songs he did. In fact, I’d venture to say he may be my favorite rock lyricist as I love the European romantic style poetic and beat poet style lyrics he had. He’s a completely different style lyricist than Dylan, so is an apples to oranges comparison IMO.

 

You can tell from his interviews and what all he read from an early age, he was very intellectual.

 

He certainly was capable of poetic lyrics (and a lot of nonsense). I liked the imagery and the mood he was able to convey through some of his lyrics, which the band certainly seemed to take inspiration from.

 

He was no Bukowski.

 

I never thought any rock/pop lyricist was…though for purposes of rock/pop, some did a good job with lyrics. Morrison’s lyrics were more interesting than most.

 

Morrison stands near the top (for Pop / Rock lyrics), IMO


Along with Dylan, Lennon, Springsteen, Paul Simon, Joni Mitchell, Rickie Lee Jones, maybe Kurt Cobain (and certainly a few others who's work I'm not as familiar with)

As someone said above, he could certainly set a mood -- often of the dark underbelly of society under television skies

 

Lyrically, Morrison stands on Dawn's Highway, raging darkness by his side to the end of the night, roaming lions in the street, dogs in heat--rabid, foaming, she walks by with robes and monkeys.

 

Sal and Ash, their managers. They got sacked. (Sal Bonafede and Asher Dann.)

 

I skimmed through a handful of pages, and a lot of the criticized lyrics are Robby's.

Usually, I don't care or even know lyrics - I'm listening to the music of the vocal, but Jim Morrison is one who I pay attention to.. My favorite is Roger Waters and John Lennon, and I guess Jim would be my #3 by default. Unique. Great vocals and I'll add his timing, which was impeccable. He could rap with the best of them, know when to pause. I think he came up with great phrases, or thinks that would flow so well. Sometimes its the hisses he makes, screams, little things that accentuate and make the song better, more palatable, more alive. "Alive, she cried"

The first song I heard was "Break On Through", which for me in middle-school was important to hear. You can interpret it in a million ways, but I think its safe to say the song has non-conformity on its mind.. "You know the day destroys the night, night divides the day" - pretty cool after I thought about it. I know the story behind the edit, but I love the "She get.... She get"..... "Found an island in your arms, a country in your eyes, arms that chained us, eyes that lied" - again, I love it.

The title "Soul Kitchen" is another cool one. "Warm my mind near your gentle stove"

"Twentieth Century Fox" is another great double-meaning title. Very clever.
"The End" is one of my favorite songs period. It's all interesting. I really love the plea, "Of everything that stands.... THE END.... No safety or surprise... THE END.... I'll never look into your eyes (lovely pause)... again. I really feel it every time I hear it, and I've been a die-hard Doors fan for about the length of Jim's entire life!

"Strange days have found us. Strange days have tracked us down" - can't explain why I love it. Maybe because its not conventional, as opposed to 'Some lady have found us".

"People are stranger, when you're a stranger" - so true!

Whatever he says in "Roadhouse Blues" is cool as hell. I'm going to listen to it now, lol.

"The Changeling" is another cool title, and just a cool story.

"Cars Hiss By My Windows" and "L'America" are unique titles. "Hello, I love you"

"Cops in cars, the topless bars, never saw a woman....... so alone"... "Motel money murder madness", nice alliteration, "let's change the mood from glad to sadness".. That entire song is a beautiful metaphor for Los Angeles, as if it were a woman. "Lucky little lady" (more alliteration).

"Cancel my subscription to the resurrection, send my credentials to the house of detention" - I loved it before I ever thought of the meanings.

"Waiting for you to....... end my song"

"All our lives we sweat and save, building for a shallow grave" (another great title "The Soft Parade")

"Breakfast where the news is read.. Television, children fed. Unborn living, living dead.. Bullet strikes the helmet's head"

"Five to One" - I think its all great.

I love "Peace Frog".. Cool title, and I love the story behind it from the poem "Abortion Stories" and how it related with his life (Patricia Kennealy). I love how on one vocal track, he sings, "She came" at the beginning of every line. Repeating "Blood in the streets ________" mentioning Chicago (shortly after the convention), or a self-reference to New Haven where he was arrested on stage (for having the guts to stand up to those who wronged him).

"The WASP (Texas Radio & The Big Beat) - interesting how the evolution of this song came to be. Again, great rhythm, great song, fascinating imagery.

I think its cool how he starts, "Wild Child" with a salutary "Hi!".. and even the ending line "Remember when we were in Africa" is memorable and has something to do with the song, even if Robby thought it was the dumbest thing he ever heard, and said so in the studio which you can witness on video.


Never liked "Horse Latitudes", but hey, he wrote it in school.

 

I grew up more a Lennon fan, but would in adulthood would definitely rank Morrison lyrics above solo Lennon as think overall solo Lennon is overrated and Morrison’s use of description and imagery is much better. I didn’t like Lennon’s minimalist solo songs focused on himself as after awhile to me got boring and I find don’t wish to hear them much now. Your analyses are interesting, however.

 

Ok, Thanks...

 

Good word and phrase usage that turn words to images.
"Childs fragile eggshell mind".
"Cars hiss by my window like waves down on the beach".
Yes poet.

 

Jim wrote some great dark and mystical lyrics that could be considered poetry. He was a very good lyricist, but as a tunesmith, he was limited to basic blues-based melodies and chord progressions ( and often that's what suited his lyrics best). The Doors songs with inventive melodies and intricate chord progressions were , musically speaking, usually the work of Robby Krieger.

 

the title alone "Cars Hiss By My Window" is cool!

 

By a panel of judges who couldn't write a valentine.

 

"Fantastic LA" (Peace Frog)

 

"... starving hysterical naked,
dragging themselves through the negro streets at dawn looking for an angry fix,
angelheaded hipsters burning for the ancient heavenly connection to the starry dynamo in the machinery of night,
who poverty and tatters and hollow-eyed and high sat up smoking in the supernatural darkness of cold-water flats floating across the tops of cities contemplating jazz,"

I guess I'm no poetry expert, but I know what I like.

 

IMO much better than much of what I’ve read that passes for …good modern poetry, the stuff in the literature books.

 

He’s ****ing awesome.